February

(fĕbˈro͞o-ĕrˌē, fĕbˈyo͞o-)

noun pl. Feb·ru·ar·ies Abbr. Feb.Usage Note: Although the variant pronunciation (fĕbˈyo͞o-ĕrˌē) is often censured because it doesn't reflect the spelling of the word, it is quite common in educated speech and is generally considered acceptable. The loss of the first r in this pronunciation can be accounted for by the phonological process known as dissimilation, by which similar sounds in a word tend to become less similar. In the case of February, the loss of the first r is also owing to the influence of January, which has only one r.